FDA ruling could ban shortening with trans fats in US

AJust saw this article...the FDA has announced a new ruling stating that partially hydrogenated oil will no longer be "generally recognized as safe". The impact to cake decorating is that shortening with trans fats would no longer be able to be sold in the US.
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/08/health/fda-trans-fats.html?_r=0

Here is an article to help make the transition to zero-trans-fat baking:
http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/GettingHealthy/FatsAndOils/FacetheFatsRestaurantResources/Baking-without-Trans-Fat_UCM_303915_Article.jsp

And here is a list of zero-trans-fat high ratio shortening products:
http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/GettingHealthy/FatsAndOils/FacetheFatsRestaurantResources/Cake-and-Icing-Shortenings-For-Restaurants-and-Bakeries_UCM_304610_Article.jsp

I think preventing 20,000 heart attacks per year is a good thing, but it's too bad people don't just eat trans fats in moderation in the first place, thus eliminating the need to stop using them altogether. Stating the obvious, that wouldn't happen…

I think preventing 20,000 heart attacks per year is a good thing, but it's too bad people don't just eat trans fats in moderation in the first place, thus eliminating the need to stop using them altogether. Stating the obvious, that wouldn't happen…

Normally I would agree, but based on studies the only safe amount of trans fats is zero, so even consuming trans fats in moderation is harmful.

Since zero-trans-fat shortening often contains a small amount of trans fat (under 0.5g can be listed as zero on the label) it's not clear if they will need to be reformulated again to remove it completely.

Following Jason's last link on the products that have 0% trans-fat, I noticed that all of them contain palm oil, which is probably one of the worst types of fat out there. It's very high in cholesterol. Both my parents and their siblings all had hereditary heart issues; as a result, they read labels like hawks way before label-reading became a national pastime.

APalm oil is high in saturated fat, but I haven't found any zero-trans-fat high ratio shortening product without palm oil (Cargill made one with canola oil but it is no longer available). The recommendation for saturated fat is to limit it to less than 7% of your total daily calories, while the recommendation for trans fat is none at all.

Assume a recipe for 3 cups of frosting calls for 1/2 cup of palm oil shortening, 1/2 cup of shortening is 900 calories, and the shortening is 50% saturated fat (typical for palm oil). The entire recipe contains 450 calories from saturated fat. If you use 1/4 cup of frosting on a cupcake, you are getting 37 calories from saturated fat. The saturated fat limit (7%) for a 2000 calorie diet is 140 calories, so a single cupcake would count for about 1/4 of your daily limit of saturated fat.

A canola-based shortening would be closer to 25% saturated fat, so the cupcake with frosting made from the healthier shortening would count for 1/8 of your saturated fat limit.

Butter is 50% saturated fat so the numbers would be similar to the palm oil shortening.

Actually, palm oil, being a plant product, contains no cholesterol, since cholesterol only occurs naturally in animals.

The strangest thing I see, with regard to fats, is that decades ago, coconut grease (I refuse to call a solid fat an "oil") was considered one of the worst substances you could ingest that wasn't overtly toxic; now, I see it touted as a health food.

At any rate, it is also my understanding that there are a number of naturally occurring trans fats that aren't nearly as bad for you as the ones that don't occur in nature.

And of course, this thread reminds me of a filthy locker room joke in which the punchline is "Crisco is SHORTENING!"

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As to banning food colorings, well, several of them have been banned for decades. Orange No. 1 was banned before most of us were born. Red No. 2 in the 1970s.

I have the good fortune to have cholesterol levels that are both rather on the low side, and strongly balanced in my favor. I'm convinced that the fact that Cheerios are my favorite cereal, and that my usual breakfast when traveling is oatmeal, has something to do with it.

And quite right, our bodies typically manufacture more cholesterol than they absorb from food.

AEvery major manufacturer of high ratio shortening has been selling a zero-trans-fat version for a few years now, especially since California banned trans fats in restaurants and bakeries a few years ago. Chances are all trans-fat versions of high ratio shortening will be phased out completely, and everyone will just switch to the ZTF versions.

After we switched to ZTF (Sweetex Z) the biggest difference was that our BC was more temperature sensitive, other than that it was pretty much the same. YMMV depending on the recipe.

Palm kernel oil is also decimating animal habitats in third-world countries, where most of it is manufactured. Developers are chopping down rain forests to create palm plantations. There are little girl scouts out there who won't sell the cookies because of this. I have mixed feelings on this issue, though.

AI would love to see artificial colors, flavors and preservatives banned like they are in Europe, it's not like food doesn't still taste or look good there and the manufacturers are all still making plenty of money.

Sure it should be down to people to make the right decision for themselves but the reality is a lot of people just don't, and we all pay the price in the end.

I would love to see artificial colors, flavors and preservatives banned like they are in Europe, it's not like food doesn't still taste or look good there and the manufacturers are all still making plenty of money.

Sure it should be down to people to make the right decision for themselves but the reality is a lot of people just don't, and we all pay the price in the end.

Natural doesn't mean I want to eat it, either. Carmine and cochineal, made from ground cochineal beetles, are used in the US as red food coloring and may legally be labeled "natural coloring" without saying what. It can be a problem for people with insect allergies. Castoreum, which is vanilla scented and flavored, can be listed simply as "natural flavoring". It comes from a beaver's butt. http://www.foxnews.com/science/2013/10/02/beaver-butts-emit-goo-used-in-vanilla-flavored-foods/ I'd like more specific labeling, please.

AI have a brother who's seriously allergic to some of the chemicals used to color virtually everything in this country, even Tums. People are allergic to all kinds of stuff, that doesn't mean we should replace all of nature with chemicals.

After we switched to ZTF (Sweetex Z) the biggest difference was that our BC was more temperature sensitive, other than that it was pretty much the same. YMMV depending on the recipe.

The icing we use at work went ZTF a couple of years ago, and there is a definite difference in its texture, depending on the season. During the colder months we have to store it closer to the oven because it gets too hard and crumbly otherwise. Conversely, during the warmer months it can be quite gloppy. \\

I would love to see artificial colors, flavors and preservatives banned like they are in Europe, it's not like food doesn't still taste or look good there and the manufacturers are all still making plenty of money.

Sure it should be down to people to make the right decision for themselves but the reality is a lot of people just don't, and we all pay the price in the end.